Promised
by Knight-Dawn
Summary: I still remember the look in your eyes, the sound of your voice, the promise we made. How strong are the ties of blood and brotherhood, love and hate? Takes place during the 4th world war. Focuses on the Uchiha. Eventual Sasusaku and other pairs. R&R!
1. The Wheels Begin to Turn

Promised

Prologue (Part One): The Wheels Begin to Turn

…

_I still remember t__he look in your eyes when they met with mine._

_The sound of your voice... the promise we made._

_…_

It was Itachi's first day at the Academy, and he wasn't sure how he felt. He was excited, yes. Happy that he was finally old enough to start. His parents were proud of him, and he wanted them to be happy. However...

Itachi was scared, too. Afraid that he'd let them down somehow. He tried to hide the truth from his parents, especially his father, but... He'd been scarred deeply by the sights he'd seen as a toddler during the Third War. He hated the concepts of war and fighting, hated the idea that he was taking the first steps down a path that would only lead him to such things...

He kept his head down slightly as he took a seat towards the back of the classroom. He figured they expected an Uchiha to be more cocky than he felt, but he wasn't really an overachiever. Still, his father's face haunted his vision as he stared at the front of the classroom. Fugaku's eyes had been beaming with pride for his eldest son as he dropped him off at the Academy.

Itachi shifted in his seat, sighing a little at the thought of those eyes on his back. Always on his back. He could never escape them, could never reveal his true feelings for fear of those eyes. His father was so proud of him, and Itachi didn't want to let Fugaku down... He knew his father would be ashamed of him if he knew the truth. That, or his parents would blame themselves for his condition.

Itachi tilted his head a little, trying to put on a better face.

As he did so, he caught sight of another student just arriving in the room. In his curiosity, he couldn't stop himself from staring at her.

She kept her head down, allowing her long, black hair to hide her face. She kept her rucksack close to her body like a shield. She moved like a shadow—with a strange, quiet grace—as she made her way to the back of the room as well, taking a seat on the opposite side of the room from Itachi.

It was only after she sat down that she looked up suddenly, as though she'd felt his eyes on her. When their eyes met, they both froze and held still—at least, until the teacher called for attention as class began.

Through the rest of the day, it was no longer Fugaku's face that haunted Itachi's vision, but hers. Her face and her deep, dark eyes. So sad, so wise for one so young. Not unlike his own. He couldn't help but wonder...

At lunch, Itachi found her sitting alone, apart from the others. He smiled as he walked over to sit in front of her. She looked up as he sat down, silently watching him.

"You don't mind, do you?" He asked, quietly.

She smiled a little, shaking her head soundlessly.

Itachi smiled at her gently, taking out the lunch his mother had packed for him—onigiri, his favorite—and began eating. He noticed the girl only had a little bit of bread, nothing else. Itachi swallowed slowly, then broke off part of what was left of his onigiri and offered it to her.

She looked at it, her eyes glancing from the onigiri to Itachi's eyes and then back. He smiled.

"Take it. My mom made it for me. It's really good."

Finally, the girl nodded and took it from him.

"Thank you," She said, a small smile on her face.

When they went back to their seats in the classroom, they looked at each other once more.

This time, they shared a smile.

…

After class, Itachi was about to walk home when he saw that she was headed in the same direction. "Hey!" he said, running to catch her.

She stopped and turned around. When she saw it was him, she smiled. "Oh."

He grinned. "Mind if I walk with you? You don't live too far away, do you?"

"You don't even know who I am," she pointed out with a little smile as she started walking, nodding at him to follow.

"No," he agreed, laughing as he fell in step with her. "I'm Itachi Uchiha. And you?"

She paused before answering. "My name is Minori. Minori Uchiha."

Itachi's smile faded as he blinked in surprise. "You're from the clan, too? I've never seen you around..."

Minori looked at her feet. "No... You wouldn't have. I lived with my father's mother until she died recently. I only just moved in with my uncle's family."

Itachi frowned a little. "What about your parents?"

"They... died. In the war. I was too little to remember them," Minori said.

Itachi mentally kicked himself. "I'm sorry."

Minori tried to smile. "It's alright. It's not your fault."

Itachi didn't know what else to say, so they walked in silence. Finally, they came to the Uchiha district, and Minori lead the way to her place. Before they came to the door, though, she turned to Itachi with a nervous smile.

"You should go to your own home now, Itachi. I don't think my uncle would be happy to see you with me... Even if you are the police chief's son."

Itachi frowned, eyes glancing from her to the house. He didn't know much about the people who lived there, but the tone in her voice worried him.

Before he could ask, though, Minori merely smiled and ran to the door, slipping inside. The only sound she made was that of the door sliding shut with a whispered sigh.

Silently, Itachi turned around to go home... His chest feeling heavy with a strange feeling. What was it?

He felt happy, yes, but there was something darker lurking beneath it. Something... scary.

He opened the door to his own home, slipping inside. He wasn't surprised to find Fugaku waiting for him.

His father smiled at him with pride. "Welcome home, son. How was your day?"

Itachi put on the face he always wore around his father. "It was a good day, father."

It was the truth, after all. It had been an exceptionally good day... Even if he felt a little strange.

If Fugaku had been planning to ask Itachi more questions, he was interrupted by little Sasuke running into the room.

"Brother!" Sasuke laughed, hugging around Itachi's waist as Itachi embraced him in turn with a smile. "You're home! Does that mean you can play now?"

Fugaku watched as Itachi messed up his younger brother's hair. "Not now, Sasuke. Some other time, okay?"

Sasuke pouted. "Promise?"

Itachi smiled. "Yes. I promise."

…

_The wheels of fate were already beginning to turn..._

…

**Author: **And what was supposed to be a 2 chapter prologue has become a 3 chapter prologue. Heh.^^;

It is mainly about Itachi and Sasuke- though a lot of other less seen Uchiha will play into this. Shisui and Izuna, for example. :D This is also going to have a lead into Sasusaku eventually...

I also started outlining this story before the big reveal about er... "Madara." (Won't say anything else, since it's recent enough to possibly be a spoiler.^^;) I'm not changing the story now, even though I am aware of the fact that this definitely breaks canon toward the end, thanks to that. :/ Oh, well.

Reviews are always welcome! ;D


	2. Don't Be Afraid

Promised

Prologue (Part Two): Don't Be Afraid

…

_The way you looked at me... What were you expecting?_

_Did you want me to say something I didn't?_

_Did you want me to tell the truth, or tell a lie?_

…

Time passed, one stage of life turned to the next.

Itachi passed quickly through the ranks, exactly as his father expected him to. And yet, that feeling of dread never fully left him, no matter how happy he was most of the time.

He felt them, watching him. All the time.

His father's eyes, always on his back, always expecting Itachi to be something he really wasn't.

Itachi wasn't perfect, he didn't want to be. He still hated fighting—he knew he always would. But he was too ashamed to tell his father the truth, even now... So he continued to hide behind false smiles and constant training.

His brother's eyes, always looking up and wanting more, always hungry for attention that he seldom got from their father. Even Itachi could hardly give him the attention he wanted.

Itachi felt deep regret that. He wished their father would turn his gaze toward Sasuke... It would make both of his children happier. Sasuke wanted attention, Itachi wanted rid of it.

The only people who really knew Itachi were Shisui and Minori. They were like him. Scarred by the hazy memories of the Third War, pacifists at heart even though they walked the path of the ninja, even sthought the blood of the elite Uchiha warriors flowed in their veins.

When Fugaku told Itachi of the plans the clan had for a coup against the village, he did not know what to say to his father. Did not know how to voice his concerns without revealing everything he'd always hidden so carefully behind those false smiles and perfect scores.

So Itachi said nothing.

That night, his rest was uneasy. He couldn't fall asleep no matter what position he tried to curl up in. Finally, after staring out at the moon vacantly for a while, Itachi sighed and got out of bed.

He slipped silently out his bedroom window into the night, not really sure where he was headed until his feet found their way to the edge of the pier where his father had taught him to use the clan's signature jutsu. Without a sound, Itachi sat down at the edge of it, letting his feet dip into the water and disrupt the clear reflection that stared back at him from beneath the pale moon.

After a while, Itachi returned home as silently as he'd left. When he slipped back under his covers, he was so exhausted that sleep claimed him without a fight.

The next afternoon, after the day's training, Itachi and Shisui walked together down to the Naka river. It had always been one of their favorite places to meet up, even as children.

Shisui picked up a rock and looked it over before flinging it into the water. Itachi just sat down below a tree to watch. Shisui remained silent for a minute before turning to Itachi and flashing him a grin.

"You look like you barely slept last night."

Itachi frowned, but didn't say anything. Shisui sighed, kicking another rock into the river.

"It's about the coup, isn't it?" Shisui asked, his demeanor notably darker.

Itachi nodded silently, turning his face back towards the village. "I wonder if Minori knows about it, too..."

Shisui frowned, following Itachi's gaze with his own. "I haven't seen her yet today, but I'm sure she does. Only the youngest children weren't told, right?"

"Yeah," Itachi muttered, thinking of Sasuke.

Shisui looked up toward the sky and sighed. "What are we going to do? We can't let the clan go through with it... It'll start another conflict. We have to talk sense into them."

Itachi shook his head, staring at the ground. "We can try... But I doubt it will do any good."

Itachi knew his father was too stubborn, to set in his ways. It was the very reason Itachi had always hidden his true heart from the man—he knew his father would never accept him for who he really was. Asking him to see sense was doomed to end poorly.

Shisui frowned, turning to face Itachi. "If that doesn't work, we can always tell the elders. Surely they would help us speak to the clan, right?"

"You'd really betray the Uchiha?"

Both Itachi and Shisui were startled by the quiet statement. They turned in unison to face the person who'd snuck up on them, relief crossing their faces when they realized it was only Minori. She silently joined them by the river, gazing for a while at her own distorted reflection in the water. Finally, she spoke up again.

"You're lucky it was me, and not one of the clan leaders. If they overheard you..." She let the sentence trail off. They all knew in their hearts that this was bound to end badly for them no matter what happened.

Shisui looked at Minori, but she didn't meet his gaze. He sighed. "Well, what do you think, Mi-chan? What should we do?"

Minori opened her mouth as if to say something, then closed it again and smiled half-heartedly. "It doesn't matter. No one's going to listen to us anyway. To the clan, we are hardly more than children. If we start speaking against them, we'll only be punished..." Itachi frowned as he saw her tug a little at the ends of her sleeves.

Minori bit her lip and tilted her head upwards. "If we tell the village elders, who knows what they'll do about the situation. They don't always handle things very well."

Shisui noted the dark expression on her face and tried to smile. "Yeah, for a group of elders they can be pretty unwise, huh?" Minori smiled a little at him and nodded. Shisui sighed and turned to Itachi. "We can't just sit still and let this happen, though. That'd be as bad as standing with the clan."

Itachi nodded. "Do what you think is right, Shisui. I won't stop you."

"Thanks," Shisui smiled a little, glancing into the woods in the direction of the Uchiha district. "I think we should head back now. Someone's bound to miss us... And the last thing we want is to have them on our case at the moment."

Itachi nodded as Shisui started off, but didn't move to follow him. Minori hesitated as well.

"Itachi..." She muttered, and Itachi only frowned.

"Something's wrong," Itachi said, looking at her downturned face. "Tell me what it is... What they've done to you."

Minori remained silent, shaking her head. "N-nothing. Really. I'm fine," she stammered, starting to walk off toward the village.

Itachi moved toward her quickly, catching her by the wrist. She winced at his gentle touch, and his frown only deepened.

"They've been hurting you again, haven't they?" He asked, his whispered tone full of anger.

Minori shook her head, but her pained expression told Itachi everything. He let go of her hand, taking a step back from her. "Why don't you tell someone, Mi-chan? Why don't you stand up to them?"

Minori refused to meet his gaze. "For the same reason that you won't stand up to your father," she said. "I'm afraid it will only make things worse."

"That's not why—"

"Don't lie to me, Itachi. I know better. You're just too proud to let someone else see through the mask you wear all the time. You can't hide the truth from me."

Itachi frowned, trying to hide the shame he felt and failing miserably. When he finally dared to meet her eyes again, her look was sympathetic. She took a step towards him.

"I'll make a promise with you, Itachi."

Itachi frowned. "What kind of promise?"

Minori moved to stand beside him and took hold of his hand. "I'll tell my uncle how I feel if you'll do the same with your parents. I'll tell them I don't like their plan, that I'm against it. That I'm tired of being told to be quiet, that I've no right to speak... That my voice isn't important."

Itachi smiled a little and shook his head. "Every voice is important, Mi-chan. Everyone should have a right to speak what's on their mind."

Minori smiled a little. "Speak for yourself, then. Don't be afraid to speak up."

_Don't be afraid._

Itachi nodded, not trusting himself to speak at this moment. Silently, swiftly, he leaned in to kiss her. It was an awkward, clumsy kiss. Minori quickly pulled away. Her face was flushed bright red, and Itachi grinned sheepishly at her.

"Alright, it's a promise."

…

_Another knot was tied in the web that would be their undoing..._

_..._

**Author: **Minori, though I named her and gave her a backstory, is based off of Tobi's statement to Sasuke where he mentioned that Itachi had a (and I quote him) "lover" that died in the massacre. I've seen a couple stories about her death around -some where they don't even give her a name or description beyond "Uchiha." (Dark hair, dark eyes.)

Since she has a somewhat important role as this goes on (though the story focuses on the Uchiha brothers and other plot details more) I had to give her a name. Minori means "true."

The next prologue is the final and longest prologue chapter, and will bring this story to where the plot begins.

Feedback is always appreciated!


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